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McManis wins 2016 cheap wine poll

McManis beats Bogle in shocking upset to win 2016 cheap wine poll

McManis, the California brand that had never finished higher than third, collected 55 percent of the votes to win the 2016 cheap wine poll. Bogle, winner of two of the first three polls, finished second, while newcomer Columbia Crest was third. This was the fourth time I’ve asked blog readers to pick their favorite cheap wine.

That McManis did so well speaks to the power of social media, and the number of votes that came from Facebook posts about the poll. In this, it did much better than Bogle or Columbia Crest. Having said that, McManis is quality wine, has been in the $10 Hall of Fame, and is worthy of its victory.

The other surprises? That Barefoot, which was second three years ago, finished seventh for the second consecutive year, and Cupcake finished eighth. No, I don’t know why Barefoot does so poorly. You’d think that since it’s the most popular wine on the blog, based on visitor numbers, that some of those people would vote for it. But apparently not. And Cupcake, whose sales have been flat nationwide, continues to underwhelm in the poll — eighth each year it has been in the poll.

Finally, Two-buck Chuck, the Trader Joe’s private label, finished last again, and didn’t receive one vote. I’ll take it out of the poll next year, along with Yellow Tail. It finished ninth for the second year in a row. We’ll give Cupcake one more chance.

This year’s results are below, and you can find the results for 2015, 2014, and 2013 at the links. The 2017 poll will return next year; if you have any suggestions for brands to add, leave them in the comments.